Sunday, May 26, 2013

Like a late summer Bahamian hurricane, the Brooklynite-synth-poppers St. Lucia have been taking the music world by storm... Now the entirety of their EP is available to stream. And we’ve got it below! Standouts like “All Eyes On You” and my personal favorite “Closer Than This” ensure that the pithy, pulpy, Passion-Pitty, gooey-electro-goodness continues. Plus, the EP is thoroughly laced with dance-beats and percussion that even Phil Collins would be impressed by. So what are waiting for, dive in, the water is

Saturday, May 25, 2013

Hi there,We’re Doziac, an Alternative Rock band from New York City. We have just released our first EP, "What Do We Do?" We’ve been told we sound like Nirvana and The Beatles, by a large amount of our listeners, and the singer is described as having a unique voice...

I found this great playlist over at One Step Brighter... Impressive blog with a great selection of music, and much to my surprise a heavy metal covers playlist I just had to share. Check it out.

From OSB: Punks had a good run on the cover front so now time for something completely different, love it or hate it, heavy metal throws out some cracking songs, some of which have been covered here, my favourite being Bunny West taking on Iron Maiden, and I couldn't choose between Arab Strap and My Morning Jacket so I stuck them both on. Don that leather jacket, make a pact with the devil and have a cup of tea and listen without prejudice.Playlist:

Friday, May 24, 2013

Exhale's first year anniversary compilation includes fourteen bands from seven different collectives from around eastern Canada. It acts as a statement of what we've had a pleasure of being a part of in the past year as well as a look into what the future holds. Awesome comp!

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

After spending time with both the cosmically-shifting Cerberus Shoals and the folkily psychedelic Fire on Fire, Caleb Mukerin and Colleen Kinsella decided to opt for something more personal and hermetic. Thus, we have Big Blood. The band's multi-phasic discography has thus far reminded people of everything from the Parson Sound to Opal to Portishead at different moments, yet none of these thumbnails comes close to capturing the elegant mystery of their essence. Sometime electric guitar lines weevil hauntingly in the aether while acoustics strum quietly up front. At other points, muted chimes of freedom push against vocals and cloppety rhythms that recall White Noise's “Making Love Without Sound”. Still others vibe early Comus or The Third Ear Band. In all, the scent of smoke hangs as heavy over this record as any we've heard.

Friday, May 17, 2013

Powering from the ‘B-town’ (Birmingham) music scene, the quartet’s simple surf hooks have garnered a well-rounded collection of fans from around the UK, separating themselves with their grunge-look and sunny songs.

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Last Good Tooth came together like many bands do… as teenagers, smoking grass and aping their favorite band of the moment in their parents' garages across the country. In the case of Last Good Tooth, that band was the Black Keys which is a bit shocking once you hear the first notes of Not Without Work and Rest trickle through your speakers. You see, the band is stunning when it comes to melodies, at carving out a line with a guitar that leads you straight into the first lyric of the songs while at the same time invoking some sort of strange Gordon Gano-ish Appalachian voodoo.

Well before the sessions for their debut were underway, word of their spirited live shows reached the offices of Team Love Records in New Paltz, NY. The band eventually dropped in on the sleepy Hudson Valley town and shook things up at the local dive bar, leading the room full of inebriated youth into a singalong of a Michael Hurley song. Later they played along side an abandoned thespian camp to a field of hedonists and swimming-hole experts. All of this left a strong impression on the folks at Team Love, and the plans for their debut album took root.

Jay Arner plays uppy pop music for the indie masses... Airy at times, emotional at other, but always a pleasure for the musical ears...

From Mint Records: He's fronted an indie rock band, played synthesizers and samplers in a pop duo, manned the drums for a piano-punk songwriter, and held down the bass in a eight-member collective. Along the way, he's also become a sought-after producer and remix artist, working out of the legendary Hive studios and recording acts like Mount Eerie, Apollo Ghosts, Rose Melberg, No Gold and many more.

Now, finally, he is going it alone. Every sound you hear on his eponymous debut album — due out this summer through Mint Records — was self-recorded by Arner in his 72-square-foot practice space using a precariously perched desktop computer and his home recording gear. The sum of his many talents, these 10 songs sizzle with DIY energy and encompass the scope of the songwriter's diverse resume.

Good old Canadian boys from the far east putting some pretty nice indie pop together on Sea Glasses. Reminds me of Silver Scooter - simple, to the point music with simmering guitars, straight beats and nerdy vocals. Very nice release.

A Singer of Songs comes bearing gifts. Beautifully crafted songs, recorded in his home studio. If you ever see him in the pub, ask if he would like a glass of Jack Daniels. And then bring him a Pabst Blue Ribbon. He will then blame you for blowing his chance with the pretty waitress.

Miss Iron and Wine of old? Get this album - all the beauty and delicateness a person can handle in an album.

Friday, May 10, 2013

Been a fan of these two for many many years. It was the first music I'd heard that had the perfect blend of irony, folk sensibility and unique delivery. I fell in love with The Moldy Peaches' self-tiled album from the first listen... What were they saying?!:... How could they make that rhyme ??!!! It's only two chords??!!!?

Once they parted ways they when through their own personal inner transformation to find their true musical calling. The funny thing, they only keep evolving into interesting musicians, covering the gamete of genres while all the while staying close to their personalities.

The Uncluded is a perfect example for Kimya, introducing urban hip-hop into her mix, which works so well. And Adam's new collaboration with No Joy, creating compelling, melodic indie pop.

Thursday, May 9, 2013

Saskatchewan has finally dropped their long awaited debut album and it’s a gorgeous blast of sweeping dream pop jams, with just the right amount of jangle in the beat to keep the feet moving. There’s not a sour note on the album which makes it hard to pick a standout, but “Destroy” is certainly the track that grabbed me first and has demanded the most replays the past 24 hours. The track kicks off with a driving beat and lonely guitar lines, but is soon overflowing with choral sighs, twinkling synths and a dreamy vocal melody that embeds itself into your brain. I’ve been humming this thing all day long - when i’m not playing it loudly and singing along. It’s a fantastic track from a stunning debut album which is now available for streaming and purchase at Bandcamp. Highest recommendation for fans of Wild Nothing, Beach Fossils, and Craft Spells.

American artist Rykarda Parasol (\reh-kaer-dah\), her real name, describes her dark sound as "Rock Noir". A unique gender-bending voice, Parasol is most often noted for her story-telling and poetic lyrics, which often lead to literary as well as musical comparisons. Parasol is also recognizable for her intimate sing-talk delivery. Her tales are authentic narratives derived from her personal experiences, travels, and adventures.

Tuesday, May 7, 2013

Like Ariel Pink or the chillwave folks, Oakland’s Warm Soda use nostalgia as an instrument. The quartet’s debut album, Someone for You, is intentionally lo-fi and one-dimensional to the extreme: Every tom-tom fill sounds like it was played with one finger on a Casio; every snarled hook and guitar solo is swathed in trebly hiss. It plays like a crackling FM transmission from the late ‘70s—or a warped cassette found in a piss-soaked dumpster behind an anonymous inner-city bar. It’s an ugly, love-it-or-loathe-it approach—and ultimately a distraction from their expertly crafted songs. paste

Monday, May 6, 2013

In 2007, while on tour supporting his album None Shall Pass, indie rapper/producer Aesop Rock wrote a fan email to folk singer/songwriter Kimya Dawson. A few years later they reconnected during the creation of arts-and-oddities blog 900Bats, which in turn sparked the pair's collaborative musical efforts. After appearing on each other's respective recent solo records, Aesop Rock- Skelethon and Kimya Dawson- Thunder Thighs, both found more worth pursuing within the group dynamic, and The Uncluded were hatched.

The debut album Hokey Fright was recorded over the course of a year using a variety of locations and devices, from voice memo recorders to fleshed out studios. Aesop and Kimya wrote, performed, and recorded the whole album, with the exception of the drums on "Delicate Cycle", which were played by James McNew of Yo La Tengo.

Jim Guthrie’s new album Takes Time will come out on May 7th, 2013 on Static Clang. Recorded between 2007 and 2012 by Mark Lawson and Jim Guthrie, this is the follow up to his 2003 Juno nominated album Now, More Than Ever. The aptly named Takes Time will be released on CD/LP/digital with artwork by Cory Schmitz. The album was mixed by Justin Nace.

Sunday, May 5, 2013

'Spring 2013' is the second annual sampler from Paris-based label Commission 45 and is available here as a free download. The four tracks presented here include two from recent releases, one previously unreleased track and another from an upcoming release.

Heligoland travelled to a secluded part of France to write and record their new EP 'Sainte Anne'. As the European winter finally draws to a close, ‘Sainte Anne’ offers a glimpse of the new season ahead, a five-song postcard from the first days of spring in a remote but beautiful corner of the world. EP highlight "Always Another" is the opening track for this year's sampler.

Australian group Scattered Disc Objects are the latest addition to the Commission 45 family. A guitar and drums duo, Scattered Disc Objects create wonderfully atmospheric and expansive instrumental music. The graceful and evocative "No Man's Land", tracked live in the studio with no overdubs, is taken from the band's debut EP 'Before And After Pluto' which will be released later this year.

After a long pause, Sealight return with a new and exclusive track for this year's Spring Sampler. "I Am" is the first song Sealight has recorded since their debut EP 'Dead Letters', released on Commission45 in 2011. The lush, layered guitars and dreamy vocals of "I Am" leave us feeling hopeful for further recordings later in the year.

Inlandsis is an electronic trio based in Lille and Paris. Earlier this year the group released an EP "Novembre", followed by their second album "Latitude". Bridging the worlds of IDM, dark ambient, techno and new wave, the melodic electronica of Inlandsis is a unique and highly personal sound. 'Rue des Fântomes' is the opening track from their new album.

Nick Principe, the sole proprietor of Port St. Willow, has made a record of falsetto-heavy, atmospheric mope-rock played at lugubrious tempos. He insists that it should be be listened to as a whole. This is not the sort of thing that gets you noticed in 2012. But while his debut LP Holiday lacks cultural cachet or wow factor, there's another kind of immediacy here if you're wired a certain way. This kind of spare urban brooding is often the result of some serious heartbreak, making you want to really listen for the lyrics. Whether Principe has endured the kind of personal tragedy that sometimes makes its way into press kits is ultimately irrelevant. This record is intensely absorbing based solely on what it's willing to explicitly share. Pf

Tablefox play some pretty mean alternative music; beautiful musical textures are layered upon one another creating a rich guitar driven EP. Check it out at BC, as they describe themselves as...

“Coming off like Mark Lanegan, Band of Horses and The Afghan Whigs logging trees in the woods, Tablefox write songs that float in the periphery. It’s good honest trend-free songwriting that knows just when to deliver a decent hook. These guys should be listened to during a long day’s drive up to your log cabin, preferably with a single malt whiskey in hand."Passenger EP by Tablefox